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20K For Life

A Random Stroke of Luck, a Notebook, and a Girl

By Monique YvonnePublished 3 years ago 9 min read
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It was pouring rain as Mila darted from her taxicab through the LaGuardia airport doors. Late for a flight, she had randomly booked at 2 a.m. a mere four days prior as insomnia ran a familiar lap around her exhausted body. She had never been to Greece, but clicking that costly book now button had instantaneously provided her with something to look forward to. This trip left her with little in her bank account, seemingly her new normal these days. She desperately needed a change of scenery and could already feel her spirits lifting as she settled into her window seat.

"Welcome aboard flight 317." The Pilots announcement began. "We have clear skies today, and it's just as beautiful here in the cockpit as my wife of only two hours is joining me for the first time. We were married this morning and will honeymoon in Santorini once we land." The plane erupted in cheers and clapping. Mila slid down further into her seat. She wanted to be happy for them. She imagined his blushing young bride next to him, both without a care in the world and a bright future ahead. Mila grunted, quickly shifting thoughts to her tragic dating past with non-committal men. "Our friends and family have taken remarkable care of us with a healthy nest egg." continued the Pilot. "To share our good fortune, we would like to pay something forward. We will be giving away, at random, one of our gift envelopes to a lucky flyer today and, upon landing, will announce which passenger has won by seat number. Please sit back, relax and enjoy the flight." As the announcement ended, exclamations of "Oh wow!" and "That's so lovely" could be heard throughout the plane. Mila rested her head firmly against the window as the overhead lights dimmed and thought, "I never win anything, but that's very sweet of them." She was fast asleep before the plane's wheels even left the ground.

Mila slept for most of the eleven-hour flight, only waking for meal service. She watched an older gentleman in front of her jump to his feet, quickly popping open the overhead storage bin while the plane still taxi'd. "Rush rush rush. Such a New York sentiment." she thought to herself. Groggy and with an urgent need to use the restroom, she had forgotten entirely about the Pilot's announcement until she heard the words, "Congratulations, seat number 16F, see us on the way out!" It still had not registered until the older gentleman who had refused to sit back down turned around to her and exclaimed, "Hey, That's you, dear!" Mila filled with a light excitement.

Upon exiting the plane, she stopped in front of the Pilot and his new bride. Her face was as red as a tomato, and she smelled of champagne. He seemed very sober, Mila noted, and was quite relieved given the nature of their meeting. "I'm... I'm 16F", she stated in a low shy voice. "OH MY GOD, Hiiii!" squealed the bride. "I'm Hannah, this is Fred, and this is your lucky day!" She exuberantly shoved a red envelope into Mila's grasp" Without missing a beat, she smiled up at her husband and said, "Fred, we must give her the notebook. I feel like someone else should have it now. Pleaseeeee love", she drunkenly whined. The Pilot held a small black moleskin notebook in his right hand while firmly clutching Hannahs's waist with his left. He looked down at the notebook and back to her. "I thought we would save this for our son or daughter?" he replied. "Fred, it's no use in it sitting for so many years unused, especially since it has brought us so much joy." Fred glanced at Hannah for what seemed a good two minutes, then smiling, he handed the notebook to Mila and said, "There is always an opportunity for a new beginning, if only we are willing to turn the page."

Relieved to be off the flight, Mila sat in a small cafe and ordered an Espresso. As the waitress glided away, she decided it was time to open the red mystery envelope. She picked up the butter knife from her table and gently tore open the top. Inside there was cash and a lot of it. A small white handwritten note tucked in front of the money read, "Cheers 16F! Here is 20K to finance some joy and happiness for you!" She instantly lost her breath and was so out of sorts staring in the envelope that she did not see the waitress standing over her with her drink order. Mila hurriedly stuffed the envelope into her purse and lifted the notebook from the table so that the waitress could serve her. She sat sipping and thinking of all of the ways she could use the money.

As spending thoughts raced through her mind, Mila casually opened the notebook to reveal its first page. To her shock and awe, words began to appear one by one page. "What….do…..you……want?" They read. Mila quickly shut the notebook. Either she was losing her mind, or she was exceptionally jet-lagged. She needed to get to the hotel room, take out her contact lenses and get a good night's sleep. Taking a sip of water from her glass on the table, Mila blinked a few times to refocus her eyes and opened the notebook again. The words were there in bold black. "What do you want?" However, directly underneath that question, a second line entry now appeared. It read, "What do you want, Mila?" Jumping to her feet and spilling her espresso, she tossed a few loose bills onto the table and hightailed it to the airport taxi hub. She climbed frantically into the back seat. The driver glanced at her through the rearview mirror for a moment at his visibly shaken passenger. "Athina Luxury Suites, please." She requested in as much of a voice as she could gather. He nodded and began to drive.

Mila paced in her hotel suite. Thoughts were looping as she tried to make sense of the notebook now staring at her from the bed. Was she losing her mind? What had they gifted her? She removed a tiny bottle from the minibar and took a sip. She sat down on the bed next to the notebook. As she took a deep calming breath, Mila could taste the whisky lingering on her tongue. She opened the notebook, picked up her pen, and began to write.

It was important for her to be as specific as possible. She did not know what was happening, but she knew for sure that she did not want to leave any room for error. "I want real love. Love with a strong, true love with a man who will be understanding, faithful and kind. A patient, intelligent, well-read, and well-traveled gentleman who is ready for marriage.

I want a daughter who has my smile and the patience of her father.

I want to open a very successful bakery on Broad Street in NYC.

I want to be able to take care of my disabled mother. I want her to want for nothing.

Mila wrote and wrote until she found herself crying. Tears dripped down onto what must have been the seventh page of the small book she had just filled with her deepest desires. She finally stopped writing. To her surprise, words slowly began to appear again that read: "Turn the page." When Mila turned the page, she gasped and almost fell off the bed. The page was filling before her eyes with what seemed to be thorough instructions.

Head downstairs to the lobby.

Take a seat in Cafe Vu.

A man in a dark grey suit will ask you for the time. Tell him that you can not give it to him for fear that he won't chat and then strike up a conversation.

Mila did precisely as the notebook instructed. She got up and headed downstairs, found and sat down in Cafe Vu. Opening the notebook to check if anything else had appeared, she was not disappointed. She watched as new words ink out in slow motion.

Change your flight date back to NYC to next Tuesday.

Invest 10K of your cash into...

"Excuse me, miss, do you have the time?" she heard a voice ask. Glancing up, she locked eyes with a tall and very handsome stranger in a dark grey suit settling in two tables away.

Eighteen years had come and gone in the blink of an eye. Mila sat on the fountain at Lincoln Center and watched her 3-year-old daughter giggling wildly while her husband ran in silly fanatical circles. "Where is Nova?" he growled in his deep lovely voice, pretending their daughter had magically disappeared right before his very eyes. "IM RIGHT HERE, DADDY!" she screamed in between giggles flashing a smile resembling Mila's very own. Mila had opened the notebook every day over the past 18 years. It hadn't had much to say for quite a while now, so she was pleasantly surprised and thoroughly excited when she saw new words today that read:

Visit Lincoln Center at 3 p.m., sit at the fountain. You will meet a distressed young lady. Talk to her.

Mila thought back on her life, on the past 18 years, and wondered what if she had not booked that flight to Greece. What if she had never written in the notebook? What if she had never gone to Cafe Vu? Would Nova exist or any of the desires she wrote for that matter? Would Mila's life be so inexplicably happy? It was at that moment her eyes rested upon a young girl. She was thin and pale, with thick dark curls framing her gorgeous face, yet she looked as though she was in total misery. Tears streamed down her red cheeks as she sat alone on the steps a few feet away. Mila glanced at her husband and nodded towards the girl as if to say; I'm going over there.

The girl barely noticed Mila as she approached and sat down beside her. "Are you alright?" Mila asked. The girl looked up from her hands and shook her head no. "Did something happen to you? Should I call someone? The girl continued shaking her head no. Mila dug in her purse and handed her a tissue.

"Tha...Thank you." The girl stammered between her tears. "I just feel so lost."

"Lost?" Questioned Mila, attempting to understand.

"I'm a freshman at Juilliard. I'm a dancer" With those words; her tears began to fall faster.

"Juilliard's a wonderful school," said Mila. "You must be exceptionally talented. What's your name?"

"Freddie," she choked out. "It's just that, well...my parents are going to be so disappointed in me! I just found out that I'm pregnant. I don't know why I'm telling you this." She stumbled over her words as they shot out much faster now between sobs. "I don't even know you, but you seem like a lovely woman. My boyfriend and I, we are so young." Mila sat silently and allowed Freddie to continue. "I'm terrified of what my father might say. Then again, I think that I know what he will say. When anything happens, whether it be wonderful or terrible, he always says the same thing."

"What is it that he says?" Mila asked as the girl suddenly became silent again as if in thought.

"There is always an opportunity for a new beginning if only we are willing to turn the page," Freddie replied. Mila instantly looked at the girl. Without saying a word, she took the small black notebook that had brought her so much joy over the past eighteen years from her purse and handed it to Fred and Hannah's daughter.

fact or fiction
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About the Creator

Monique Yvonne

Monique is a New York City based creative. She writes about hair, beauty and lifestyle + fictional creative writing pieces.

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